Van Dijk said something special about Isaac Kearney

The parents of a young Liverpool fan have thanked the club after they treated him to a day he will never forget.

Isaac Kearney, a six-year-old boy with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, was the recipient of a special gesture from the Reds.

Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome is an extremely rare chromosomal disorder caused by a missing piece of the short arm of chromosome 4.

As part of the celebrations for International Day of Persons with Disabilities, Kearney was treated to a number of special moments by Liverpool.

Firstly, captain Virgil van Dijk and star man Mo Salah surprised the youngster at his school, North Wood.

He was then invited to the AXA Training Centre, where he met the rest of the squad.

It was there that he was informed of the next leg of his mini adventure, with Van Dijk inviting him to be a mascot for the upcoming clash with Man City at Anfield.

Speaking about the experience, Van Dijk shared a touching message about Isaac:
“Isaac has a big heart, a beautiful spirit, and an inspiring determination. Seeing his love for football and his courage is truly special. It reminds us why we play this game – to bring joy, to inspire, and to make memories that last forever. Walking out with him as a mascot will be an honour.”

Kearney and his parents were asked about the experience during an interview on BBC Breakfast on Boxing Day.

Kearney said he had a “good” time, while his mother, Melissa, went into more detail.

“It was unbelievable,” she said. “Basically, children with the syndrome are all so different, they all develop differently. In Isaac’s condition, he has learning disabilities, low muscle tone, and requires a lot of physiotherapy.

“We were told that he may never walk. When we saw him walking on the pitch with Virgil, we were like, wow. A miracle, really. Just unbelievable, honestly.

“We’ve said every day since, it’s not every day you get to see your child’s dreams come true. Even looking back, it just doesn’t seem real.”

Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson was convinced that Liverpool would struggle this season but he has been proven wrong, with Arne Slot’s men closing in on the title.

Liverpool has emphatically proven Paul Merson wrong after the Sky Sports pundit went early with his verdict on Arne Slot’s side this season. After the Reds had lost 1-0 at Anfield to Nottingham Forest in September, he was not convinced.

“I don’t see it,” Merson said on Sky Sports after that game in a clip that has now resurfaced and is doing the rounds on social media. “I don’t see them challenging. I don’t. They’ve got to move it quicker. It was a bit boring. It was slow.

“When you watch Jurgen Klopp’s teams play, they break and it was so quick. It wasn’t quick enough. Teams in this Premier League, they get back so quickly into shape — especially the lesser teams. It seems to me watching this game that it was ‘We don’t lose’ before ‘We win’. That’s not Liverpool.”

Liverpool has since been unbeaten in the Premier League. Winning 3-1 over Southampton this weekend and with Arsenal dropping more points, this time against Manchester United, the gap at the top is now 15 points (though the Gunners have a game in hand).

Slot’s men have shown much more in the final third than Arsenal with Mikel Arteta’s men struggling to find goals in several games thanks to a limited attacking unit and plenty of injuries. Arteta stormed out of an interview after his team drew 1-1 at Old Trafford with the title having looked out of reach for a few weeks.

“I don’t want to say that,” he insisted when asked if the race was over. “Today the frustration is that we haven’t won the game. We know the urgency and we are obligated to win every single match if you want to have any chance of doing that. I don’t think it is the right moment to talk about that.”

Liverpool are set for a monumental week in their season as they prepare to face Paris Saint-Germain and Newcastle United after defeating Southampton in the Premier League.

Liverpool continued their path to the Premier League title this past weekend after recording victory over Southampton.

The Reds’ healthy advantage at the top of the table is secure as they set a relentless pace in the division. The biggest week of Arne Slot’s season now awaits however with cup success on the horizon.

First Liverpool will be tasked with defending their lead over Paris Saint-Germain to make the Champions League quarter-final. Then there is the small matter of a visit to Wembley, where a win over Newcastle will earn Slot his first trophy since taking charge at Anfield.

With that said, Mirror Football takes a look at the latest news and rumours surrounding the club.

Slot’s anger

Trent Alexander-Arnold has revealed that boss Arne Slot was plenty angry, when Liverpool entered the changing room 1-0 down against Southampton. The Dutch coach had the opportunity to directly give his verdict on his performance at the break after being forced to watch from the stands due to his ban.

The Reds’ vice-captain believes his boss’ response was justified, but reckons it is a good sign his team were able to come away victorious despite their level of performance.

“Probably the most (angry) we have seen him so far, I guess it’s a good thing he’s not been too animated so far, but I think rightfully so,” said Alexander-Arnold.

“It wasn’t good enough, we deserved to be down, but we came out second half with a point to prove and did that really early on. As a team and individuals, you’d like to be very good every single game but it’s not possible.

“You are going to have days like this where you don’t play well, you’re not proud of the performance. It’s a day you look back on it and think yeah we got the three points, that’s the most important thing.”

PSG rest

Paris Saint-Germain have sent a warning to Liverpool, ahead of their Champions League clash at Anfield, and rested their stars in Ligue 1. Luis Enrique made eight changes to his side, appearing to prioritise the European meeting after starting without Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes, Fabian Ruiz, Vitinha, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, and Ousmane Dembele.

The French side still came away victorious against Rennes, away from home. Enrique has already laid down the gauntlet, as PSG attempt to overcome their 1-0 deficit.

“I think we’ll be in the best possible shape for the Liverpool game,” Enrique said. “We’ve got nothing to lose. Our only objective is victory and that’s what we’re going for.

“Football allows for surprises; it is true that we were down and sad after the first game, but as we have analysed the game and after beating Rennes, a difficult team, it makes us hopeful. I repeat, we have nothing to lose, which makes us a more dangerous team than we usually are.”

Elliott plea

Liverpool ace Harvey Elliott hopes Mo Salah will remain with the Reds beyond the end of his current contract. The Egyptian star is enjoying his most productive season since arriving at Anfield but has yet to agree news terms, with his deal to expire in the summer.

After a brace against Southampton, Elliott was happy to heap praise on his team-mate whose efforts belie his 32 years of age. Salah tops the Premier League scoring charts and has already tied the record for most goal contributions in a single season.

“I’ve said too much about him, he just keeps proving the whole world wrong, each and every season,” said Elliott.

“The guy is just not real. He’s just an amazing player and to witness his greatness and what he keeps achieving season by season is just unbelievable. Let’s just hope he stays.”

Mikel Arteta cut a frustrated figure after Arsenal could only reduce their Premier League deficit to Liverpool by one point.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta stormed out of his post-match interview after the Gunners failed to make a significant dent on Liverpool’s lead in the Premier League title race. The Spaniard walked out of his duties with Sky Sports after seemingly becoming irritated by the line of questioning.

Declan Rice scored the equaliser as the England international cancelled out Bruno Fernandes’ first-half opener. The Red Devils came agonisingly close to snatching the points when Fernandes came close in the dying moments.

Arteta broke off from his interview as reporter Patrick Davison asked about regrets over failing to sign a striker but the former Everton midfielder didn’t stay as he was asked about the deficit in the Premier League title-race. The Gunners failed to take advantage of United’s poor form this season and reduce the gap to Liverpool, after their win over Southampton stretched their lead to 16 points.

Gary Neville joined Roy Keane, Paul Merson and Jamie Redknapp following his stint in the commentary box and was visibly surprised by the actions of Arteta.

He said: “He was agitated wasn’t he? He was agitated walking towards the Arsenal fans at the end and I can see why. They dominated the game in the first-half but it’s not line ball, you need to put the ball in the back of the net. The biggest inquest at Arsenal will be, ‘why didn’t we sign a striker?’

“Is that because they wasn’t provided with one by the recruitment team? They haven’t signed one for two or three years. Did he not want one? It’s a mystery how they ended up in this position.”

Liverpool need 16 points from their remaining fixtures, with Arsenal facing a seismic task of shifting them from the summit. The Gunners have back-to-back home games against Chelsea and Fulham before the Reds host neighbours Everton at the beginning of April, when they return to Premier League action.

It is one of the great football yarns, the tale of how Frank Worthington came within a hair’s breadth of joining Bill Shankly’s Liverpool in the summer of 1972.

The story was widely revisited in the days following the charismatic former England striker’s death four years ago, and it is easy to see why, for in many ways it captures the essence of one of English football’s most noted mavericks

Yet it is also an episode tinged with sadness, a path not taken towards a door that would never open for Worthington, who counted Huddersfield Town, Leicester City and Bolton Wanderers among the 24 clubs he represented in a career spanning more than a quarter of a century.

‘If I had played for Liverpool I would have been inspirational,’ Worthington told this newspaper in 2016, less than a month before his daughter announced he was battling Alzheimer’s (a claim he immediately denied).

‘It would have been big time, I would have gone higher and higher. I would have been more than Kevin Keegan or Kenny Dalglish, as I had more skill.’

That was a big claim, given how deeply embedded Keegan and Dalglish are in Anfield folklore. Yet, on the red half of Merseyside, the prospect of a strike partnership that combined Keegan’s speed and industry with Worthington’s swashbuckling creativity was, for a time, the talk of the town.

It was not only on the pitch that Worthington’s reputation preceded him, however, and while his talent held obvious appeal for Shankly, his individualism and rakish lifestyle seemed out of kilter with what the Liverpool boss normally looked for in a player.

‘Frank was a maverick, he was the most wonderful player,’ recalls Phil Thompson, a former Liverpool captain whose own Anfield career was in its formative stages at the time. ‘Flamboyant, I think you would call him.

‘But it was quite left-field, Bill Shankly going for him. We’d come from Roger Hunt and Ian St John, who were not only centre-forwards but workaholics. They had a team ethic, whereas Frank had this individual brilliance, he could do something out of nothing. Getting one of those flair players, it wasn’t something that we were used to.

‘Frank was such a wonderful, lovely man, and you could see him mixing in the dressing room. But I think we all were wary of his lifestyle. Would that always be to [the liking of] our lieutenants Joe Fagan, Bob Paisley and Ronnie Moran? It would have been difficult for them to accept his lifestyle at the time.’

To judge from his assessment of the qualities Shankly valued in a Liverpool player, the decision to pursue Worthington may have caught Geoff Twentyman, the late Liverpool chief scout in whom Shankly placed implicit trust, similarly flat-footed.

‘Shankly wanted, above all, to know about the lad’s private life, what he was like, did he go out drinking every night, what his home background was, and so on,’ Twentyman told Shankly biographer Stephen F Kelly. ‘He liked players with character.’

Worthington was certainly a character, but how far his private life dovetailed with Shankly’s clean-living principles was another matter. A shaggy-maned roisterer renowned for sporting cowboy boots and under-utilising the top few buttons of his shirts, he was also an Elvis Presley devotee who routinely treated team-mates to a rendition of Are You Lonesome Tonight? on away trips.

The irony in that choice of song was palpable, for Worthington was rarely alone of an evening. Here was a man who did not so much play the field as the entire countryside, dating a seeming endless array of models and beauty queens. His first wife, Birgitta Egermalm, was a former Miss Sweden; his second, Carol Dwyer, was a former Page 3 girl.

Once asked by the British football magazine Shoot to name his previous clubs, Worthington replied: ‘The Playboy, Tramps and Sandpiper’ – before identifying ‘birdwatching’ among his hobbies.

Put it this way: there was a reason Worthington entitled his 1994 autobiography One Hump or Two? – and it was not down to a natural fascination with camels.

So as Shankly drove to Huddersfield to negotiate a deal for the 24-year-old striker, whose 18-goal tally in the 1969-70 season had been instrumental in returning the Terriers to the top flight, he must have known what he was getting himself into.

But neither that knowledge nor the club-record fee of £150,000 required to prise Worthington from his boyhood club were about to deter the Scot, for the simple truth was that Liverpool needed goals.

Roger Hunt and Ian St John, who had combined to score 341 goals in 386 appearances in the 60s, had left the club, while Keegan’s partnership with John Toshack was still in its infancy. Worthington, who had just been called up to the England under-23 side, was seen as the solution.

That might have surprised Sir Alf Ramsey, who was stunned when Worthington, true to form, pitched up at Heathrow airport for an international tour to eastern Europe wearing cowboy boots, a red silk shirt and a lime velvet jacket.

‘Oh s***, what have I f****** done?’ Ramsey reputedly exclaimed – although his misgivings may have been allayed when the striker marked his debut with a goal in a 3-0 win over Poland.

With Worthington yet to learn of his impending move to Anfield, he flew back to London to find Liverpool secretary Peter Robinson and Roy Lambert, Huddersfield’s chief scout, awaiting him. The trio drove to the nearby Ariel hotel, where they were met by Shankly.

‘Do yer wanna come and play for Liverpool?’ enquired the Anfield maestro. ‘We need yer, son.’

Worthington did not need to be asked twice. With terms agreed, the group made their way to Merseyside the following morning to complete the formalities. As Shankly, Robinson, and future manager Bob Paisley looked on, Worthington signed his new contract; all that remained was a medical.

What happened next was to change the course of Worthington’s career. A blood pressure test returned an unexpectedly high reading. The club doctor repeated the procedure several times, but the dial remained stubbornly unaltered.

‘It’s just tension, son,’ said Shankly.

Determining that a little sunshine would soon return his new prize to full working order, Shankly packed Worthington off to Majorca. It proved an uncharacteristic misstep by the Liverpool manager.

With an eye to the main chance every bit as sharp as his eye for goal, Worthington used the trip to unwind in his own inimitable style – and never mind that he was dating Carolyn Moore, the reigning Miss Great Britain, at the time.

There are differing accounts of what went on during that Spanish sojourn, and no doubt the episode became embellished over time.

Worthington said in his autobiography that he joined the mile-high club with a random stranger on the outward flight, later became intimately acquainted with a young Swedish woman and her mother, and hooked up with a Belgian model. Perhaps unsurprisingly, it has also been claimed he suffered a dizzy spell at one point that left him laid out on the floor of his hotel bedroom.

Whatever the reality of it all, the bottom line is that Worthington returned to Merseyside with his blood pressure higher than ever. His Liverpool career was over before it had even started.

‘I’m sorry, son, but as much as I want to, I can’t sign you,’ Shankly told him. ‘I can’t afford to lay out a record amount to bring in a player with a question mark hanging over his head.’

Like the rest of his Liverpool team-mates, Thompson remained in the dark about the background to the episode. Long after the event, though, it would come up in conversation between the pair.

‘We didn’t know how, why and what had actually happened at the time,’ Thompson recalls. ‘There was talk of medicals, there was talk of other things.

‘it was only many years later, now and again being in Frank’s company – now this is only allegedly – that he actually said, if I can remember, he’d had the most wonderful summer. He drank, he sunbathed, and everything else that he would get up to.

‘Frank came back and his blood pressure was through the roof. He’d been drinking and partying and enjoying his lifestyle, and of course his blood pressure was too far exaggerated to take a risk. Whether Bill Shankly had wondered why it was inclined to be like that, I don’t know.’

Again, there is an undercurrent of sadness to this jack-the-lad tale that is too often overlooked. Worthington’s father Eric had died not too long beforehand, leaving him with an abiding sense of loss.

‘The hardest thing that ever happened to me was losing my father, who I miss greatly to this day,’ Worthington would say almost a quarter of a century later.

Did that devastation contribute to his self-sabotaging behaviour that summer? Perhaps even Worthington himself would have struggled to answer that one. But grief confers a different perspective on life, and it would be foolhardy to dismiss the possibility that there were weightier things on his mind than the loss of a promising career move.

‘There was no point in getting upset,’ said Worthington. ‘I just told myself it was their loss.’

History tells a different story.

Liverpool won the league and UEFA Cup that season, and would go on to claim a glittering array of domestic and European silverware throughout the 70s and 80s.

Worthington went on to Leicester, where he would claim eight senior England caps – too modest a haul for so sweeping a talent, even in an era where Ramsey and his successor Don Revie rarely put their faith in flair.

On the face of it, Worthington remained unfazed.

‘People say I have squandered a fortune on women and booze,’ he would quip on the after-dinner circuit. ‘But it is better than wasting it.’

Yet Worthington would later describe not joining Liverpool as ‘by far my biggest regret’, reflecting with remorse that it meant he never had the chance to showcase his skills in a team challenging for titles.

‘It would have been nice to have played with Frank for a little bit,’ says Thompson. ‘We were of a mindset where we all knew our jobs – we had to work, but listen, we partied with the best of them, our era, and we were famous for it.

‘He’d have fitted in, in that department – and maybe he would have been astonished by how much we partied! But it would have been lovely for Frank, linking up with the Terry McDermotts and Jimmy Cases of this world. We were all good social animals.’

No appraisal of Worthington’s career would be complete without a nod to his most celebrated goal, scored for Bolton in a First Division game against Ipswich in April 1979.

It began when Worthington, stationed a couple of yards to the left of the penalty spot, intercepted a flick-on from Alan Gowling with his back to goal.

With a trio of defenders converging, Worthington brought the ball down with a cushioned header, juggled the ball twice in the D, and then flicked it over his head, catching the Ipswich players flat-footed as they tried to push out. The coup de grâce came in the form of an immaculate volley, drilled low and hard into the bottom left-hand corner.

‘It was something sensational, says Thompson, ‘it was one of the great goals, one of those moments that’s engrained in your mind.

‘That’s what he was, a free spirit who could produce those moments of magic.

‘Whether it would have worked at Liverpool, we will never know. But I think it’s probably one of those moments in Frank’s life – not his career, in his life – when he’s probably going, “Oof, what might have been.”‘

In a heartwarming display of unity and passion, Liverpool legend John Barnes shared an unforgettable moment with seven-year-old Isaac during the Reds’ recent victory at Anfield.

The young fan, who has captured the hearts of many with his love for the club, had the unique opportunity to sing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” alongside one of his heroes.

Isaac, born with Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome—a rare genetic disorder affecting development—has been an inspiration to the Liverpool community. His enthusiasm for the team and the iconic anthem has resonated with fans worldwide.

In December 2024, Liverpool FC orchestrated a special surprise for Isaac. Stars like Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah visited him at school, leading to an invitation to be a mascot for the match against Manchester City. This gesture highlighted the club’s commitment to inclusivity and the profound impact of football on individuals’ lives.

The tradition of singing “You’ll Never Walk Alone” holds a special place in Liverpool’s history. Adopted in the 1960s, the anthem symbolizes hope and solidarity, echoing through Anfield before every home game. For Isaac, singing it alongside John Barnes was more than just a duet; it was a testament to the unifying power of football and the enduring spirit of the Liverpool community.

Such moments underscore the profound connections forged through shared passions. Isaac’s journey, from a devoted young fan to sharing the spotlight with a club legend, exemplifies the magic of football—a sport that brings people together, transcending challenges and celebrating unity.

Liverpool Football Club is built on passion, tradition, and the unbreakable bond between its fans.

Among the sea of red that floods Anfield on match days, one young fan has created a pre-match ritual so special that it has become a spectacle in itself.

His name is Isaac, a boy whose love for Liverpool runs deeper than just watching the game—he brings music to it.

A Ritual Like No Other

Every time Isaac steps into Anfield, he follows a tradition that has now become his signature. Before taking his seat in the stands, he stops at the fan zone, pulls out his guitar, and strums melodies that echo through the streets. His voice, filled with raw emotion, draws fellow fans closer as they join in, creating a moment of unity before the game even begins.

And then, as he enters the stadium, he doesn’t just watch—he becomes part of the soul of Anfield. When the anthem “You’ll Never Walk Alone” begins, Isaac sings with all his heart, surrounded by thousands who share his love for the club.

How It All Began

Isaac’s love for Liverpool is more than just fandom—it’s part of who he is. Inspired by the legendary atmosphere of Anfield, he wanted to contribute in his own way. With his guitar as his companion, he started playing before matches, turning nervous energy into something magical. What began as a personal moment soon caught the attention of other supporters, and before he knew it, Isaac had become an unforgettable part of the match-day experience.

A Young Fan, A Big Impact

It’s not just about the music. It’s about the spirit. When Isaac plays, he reminds everyone why they love this club. He embodies what it means to be a Liverpool supporter—loyal, passionate, and unafraid to show his love for the team.

His ritual has even become a source of motivation. Some fans now arrive earlier just to hear him play. Others record his performances and share them online, spreading his passion across the world. In a way, Isaac is doing what Liverpool’s anthem has always preached—making sure that no fan, no matter where they are, ever walks alone.

The Future of a Liverpool Legend…

Will Isaac keep this tradition alive? There’s no doubt about it. Whether Liverpool is playing a cup final or a midweek fixture, Isaac will be there, guitar in hand, ready to fill Anfield with music and passion.

So, if you ever find yourself heading to a Liverpool game, listen for the sound of a guitar near the fan zone. That’s Isaac, the boy whose love for Liverpool has turned into something truly special.

Former referee Mike Dean has revealed his verdict on a key decision in Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over Southampton in the Premier League, insisting VAR may have made an error in judging the visitor’s opener.

The Reds produced an impressive comeback to secure three points at Anfield, but the Saints were the ones who broke the deadlock at the brink of half-time by William Smallbone. The midfielder pounced on a miscommunication between Alisson and Virgil van Dijk, slotting home to give his side an unexpected lead.

Dean ‘Convinced’ Southampton Scored Offside Goal.

Speaking on Sky Sports, Dean gave his perspective of Southampton’s opener, suggesting that the goal should not have stood based on what he saw. He said: